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A new friend from the BlogHer 09 conference is struggling to get funding for her son’s autism. In Canada, the land to which we Americans are threatening to flee every five minutes. It makes sense. Even socialized health care doesn’t mean it’s fabulous. It just means it’s more accessible. For certain treatments. According to certain limitations.

I know, becuase I lived in Israel, where health care plus — ie, standard plus complementary and alternative medicine — was about $30/month, and prescriptions were $1 each. The only problem was finding a good doctor and body worker. I had a massage therapist who massaged my eyeballs. And throat. I am not making this up. And when I protested, she was like, OMG, you are so sensitive.

Then there was the chiropractor who told me to lift up my shirt. Yeah, creep, I’ve had enough chiropractic to know there is no reason whatosever that you need to see my titties do do some spinal cracking. There were also the chiropractors who 1) looked down my shirt every time I got on the table, 2) did a wrist adjustment right on top of my crotch (like my hand couldn’t be put anywhere else), and 3) basically wrecked my body — injuring my left lower back and right ankle, tearing my right rotator cuff, and damaging ligaments in my left shoulder and neck. I am still recovering, and it’s been four years.

Don’t blame it on Israel, either. Health care sucks world-wide. But damn it, we’re going to take the world by storm by telling our stories, and we’re going to change it. I think each and every single one of us who has gone through the health care wringer is now an expert and should be giving workshops at medical schools across the world. Seriously.